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| "Christ Destroying His Cross," by Jose Clemente Orozco (Museo de Arte Carrillo Gil: Mexico City) |
Are you a Christian? Then I’m sorry, I’m going to have to ask you to stop reading now and direct your attention elsewhere. The comics, maybe. Nothing personal, understand. It isn’t that I believe you and your children are damned to burn in hell for all eternity. It’s that my religion forbids addressing you, in my view. “These are the words that you shall speak to the sons of Israel,” God tells Moses in Exodus, which obviously leaves Gentiles out.
Wait a second! “Sons”? Maybe women readers should move on too. Let me pray on that and get back to you.
“When did this happen?” you might ask. And I might ask, “What are you still doing here?” But OK, for argument’s sake, while you are moving yourself down the pike, I was reminded by the Supreme Court’s taking up another Colorado business unwilling to bow to the humiliation of providing services to people of whom they disapprove.
Ten years ago it was a Colorado baker who didn’t want to create a cake for a gay wedding. Now it’s a graphic designer floating the argument that she is a creative artist whose First Amendment rights are being infringed upon by the government, and its pesky insistence on treating all citizens equally.
Yes, there is an alternate view, that not only democracy, but also the basic capitalist system demands treating all paying customers the same — your cash is good, you buy a newspaper, you get to read every story in it.
But that is a fallacy, in that it chafes against my sincere religious belief.
Yes, some might argue sincere religious belief is not a justification for anything — sincere religious belief is also what prompts suicide bombers to detonate themselves in crowded markets.
But faith is on the march, the Supreme Court crowded with ideologues who have shown themselves all too willing to tear up the social fabric to scratch their religious itch, forcing millions of women to drive across the country to manage their gynecological business. The next step is to make the freedom of every American subject to the whim of whatever employee says “Yes, may I help you?” when you walk into their shop.
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I like the opinions of many lawyers I've read are all baffled why this case ever got to SCOTUS.
ReplyDeleteNo gay people have asked for her website creation as of yet, so she doesn't have standing, but the six ultra-insane religious fascists on SCOTUS want to spread their hate even further, is what it appears.
Alito being the worst of all them, I'm sure he will write an opinion finding the words of some 16th Century witch-hunter or maybe even find a quote from noted torturer & absolute crackpot, Tomas de Torquemada to justify his inane & absurd opinions!
And we thought Monty Python was just kidding when they said, "Here comes the Spanish Inquisition."
Deletejohn
I knew they were speaking the truth.
Delete"Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition." Tom
DeleteI scratch my head with wonder. If the laws said someone can require you to become gay, then those complaining would have a darn good point. But that obviously isn't the case. No one is being forced to live a lifestyle they somehow disapprove of. They are simply being asked to acknowledge that others have the same rights as them. It takes a pretty twisted mindset to use Constitutional pretzel logic to create a second class of citizens.
ReplyDeleteThank you McConnell, Trump, and the Federalist Society for taking the steps to destroy our democracy, you ignorant buffoons. I wish I had a time machine to go into the future and see a brown, muslim majority using the rules these fools instituted to persecute old white Christian men. Maybe I could even take the conservative majority of the Supreme Court with me on the journey. Wouldn't that be fun?
I think the irony is the question to Christians, “What would Jesus do?”
ReplyDeleteI can't help thinking that the problems claimed by these website designers or pharmacists or bakers or whoever are entirely self-inflicted. That is, if you're going to have a problem with others' beliefs, then don't put yourself into a situation where their beliefs will affect you, forcing you to take action (or not take action) against people who had no quarrel with you before they darkened your doorstep.
ReplyDeleteIf others' beliefs cause you that much grief, don't put yourself into a profession dealing with the general public, whoever might walk in your door. That example of a pharmacist reluctant to provide morning-after pills was especially egregious. How are they remotely justified in inserting themselves between a doctor and patient?
Too many of my fellow believers don't understand that the antidiscrimination laws protect them as well and that may become more important to them as we become a post-Christian society. Nor do they realize that winning battles in court does us no good if we lose the war with the public as "winning" makes us look like haters who are going after gays who want to impose our views on everyone else.
ReplyDeleteI can't figure out what Neil wants in the case of gay rights. Does he want everyone to approve of that lifestyle? Does he want every church and business to be required to serve a gay wedding? Why doesn't he make it clear?
ReplyDeleteThere there. I'll try to help. I don't care what you approve of. But businesses are required by law to adhere to a certain level of decency. Swap the word "Black" for "gay" and clarity might come. Or, I suppose, not come. But remember: just because you don't understand something doesn't mean it isn't understandable.
DeleteI’m not brushed up on all the angles on the web designer story, but I do remember the bakery case, and there was a subtle distinction: the baker argued that he wasn’t refusing to serve a gay couple, just that he wouldn’t fulfil a specific cake design order. He also noted that he routinely declined requests for Halloween themed orders for the same reason, silly as it was. The guy was obviously a bit of a weirdo, but I don’t think that his refusal to ice up a batch of Jack o lantern cookies meant that he was discriminating against Halloween celebrants, or striking a blow against democracy.
DeleteNeil, so it would be good enough for you if every business had to serve a gay wedding?
DeleteIt's actually not about me, a concept I encourage you to consider. My column is read by gays, and hidebound haters. Doesn't detract from me a bit. You have to understand — maybe you already do — that being a bully is about positing harms done to you by the people you want to harass, when in fact no harms are done.
DeleteMy first wife was a typesetter and a graphic artist. She stole the famous Molière quote about writing and applied it to her profession, when she said: "Being a graphic artist is like prostitution. First you do it for fun, then you do it for a few close friends, and finally, you do it for money." It appears that this woman's religious beliefs have superseded her profit motive. In this country, the almighty dollar trumps (sorry) everything. Money doesn't talk...it swears (Bob Dylan). How un-American this homophobic Christian fascist is...[smirk]
ReplyDelete